Tatas may double iPhone casings capacity to one lakh

Tata Electronics is significantly ramping up production of enclosures for Apple's iPhones at its Hosur unit, sources aware of the developments told ET.

"Tata Electronics is looking to double its existing capacity of around 50,000 enclosures," one person cited above said. "The ramp-up will likely take place ahead of the product launches that Apple does around September every year. This is Phase II of the build-out at the Hosur facility."

This person added that Tata Electronics had achieved capacity of about 50,000 enclosures before the fire that took place at the unit in September last year, which was a setback for the company that forced them to press pause on their rapid expansion.

"It took some time for them to get back on track post the fire," another person said. "But the capacity is at pre-fire levels now."

Queries sent to Tata Electronics and Apple remained unanswered as of press time Sunday.

Tata Electronics' expansion push comes close on the heels of Apple CEO Tim Cook's recent statements that India will become the primary manufacturing hub for iPhones sold in the US.

"For the June quarter, we do expect the majority of iPhones sold in the US will have India as their country of origin," Cook said during Apple's Q1 earnings call on May 1.

Also Read: Most iPhones sold in US in June quarter to come from India, says Apple CEO Tim Cook

He added that Vietnam would be the country of origin for almost all iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and AirPods products sold in the US.

Cook's declaration about India marked a significant shift in the Cupertino-based company's production strategy and cemented the belief that Apple was indeed looking to diversify its supply chain away from China.

Apple's suppliers in India are leaving no stone unturned to capture this opportunity.

Earlier this year, Tata Electronics said it had acquired a controlling 60% stake in Pegatron Technology India (PTI). This follows the company's acquisition of Wistron’s India operations (based in Narsapura, Karnataka) less than a year ago in March 2024. This was seen as the company looking to strengthen its place in the Apple global value chain (GVC).

Further, last week ET had reported that another Apple supplier Jabil too was looking to scale up its AirPods casings production in India.

All of this reflects a broader push by Apple to diversify its supplier base from China amid global tariff-related uncertainties and the ongoing Washington-Beijing trade war.

Another Apple supplier, Foxconn's India arm, for instance has been a big beneficiary. The Tainwanese contract manufacturer has immensely stepped up its investments in mobile assembly in India and this is expected to only get more intensified.

The company has a huge factory coming up in Bengaluru and has a spanking new unit in Hyderabad that is targeting AirPods — showing that the company is broadening its portfolio and venturing into other areas of production in India.

Also Read: New Tata plant starts iPhone production, Foxconn close behind as Apple looks to India, sources say